Teaching, learning and assessment

Dr Luke Seaber has a Bachelor's degree in French and Arabic from the University of Oxford and a PhD in English from the University of Turin. He taught at universities across Italy for eight years and was a Marie Curie research fellow for two years. He became the UPCH Modern European Culture tutor in 2014. He has published widely on nineteenth- and twentieth-century British literature and is Co-President (2023-26) of The Space Between: Literature and Culture, 1914-1945.

Dr James R Cross has a PhD in Classics from King’s College London and a post-compulsory PGCE from the UCL Institute of Education. He has over five years’ experience of teaching on the UPCH.

Dr Amelie Berger teaches Mathematics on the UPCH and previously taught on UPCSE. She studied Mathematics at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa and completed postgraduate study at Ohio State University, where she also taught. She later lectured at the University of Johannesburg, moved to England in 2002, taught A-level Mathematics and Further Mathematics, obtained a PGCE, and then joined UCL. Her specialist topic is graph theory.

Dr Nalini Vittal has been with UPCH since it began. She trained in India and the UK and has taught in Cambodia, India and Kazakhstan. Her main interest is economic development. She helped establish the UPC programme on the Astana campus with UCL’s partner, Nazarbayev University, from 2010 to 2015. She is proud that her students qualify for leading Economics and other degree programmes in the UK.

Will Richards has Bachelor's and Master's degrees in History from Cambridge University and a second MA in European History from Birkbeck College, London, completed in 2013. He began working at UCL in 2006 and has led Modern European History and Politics since 2010. He is also a trained English language teacher with a Trinity Diploma, awarded in 2003, and has worked as a teacher and examiner in Taiwan, Brazil, Spain and Italy.

Dr Katherine Stansfeld joined UPCH in 2022. She completed a PhD in Human Geography at Royal Holloway, University of London and an ESRC Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at Queen Mary University of London, where she is now an Honorary Research Fellow. Her research explores how humans and more-than-humans live together in cities, using creative methods and community participation. She also works for London Development Trust as a Research and Higher Education Specialist.

Dr Guy Crawford joined UPCH in October 2024. Before this, he taught or carried out research at Bader College (Queen’s University), the University of East Anglia, the University of Leeds, Pembroke College, University of Oxford, Lancaster University, and the Institute of Development Studies. He holds a PhD in Geography from Lancaster University.

Dr Aga Kosinska is a senior Chemistry teaching fellow and Chemistry Coordinator on the UPCSE. She has Master's degrees in Chemical Technology from Gdansk University of Technology and Analytical Chemistry from the University of San Francisco, and a PhD in Medicinal and Organic Chemistry from the University of St Andrews. In 2010 she became a Chemistry teaching fellow at UCL’s Centre for Preparatory Studies in Kazakhstan and later lectured in Extended Science at Plymouth University.

Dr Marcin Kosinski obtained a PhD in materials chemistry and renewable energy sources at the University of St Andrews, after graduating from Gdansk University of Technology with an MSc engineering degree in Chemical Technology. His teaching includes chemistry at UCL’s Centre for Preparatory Studies in Kazakhstan, KS3 and KS4 teaching and teacher training at Nazarbayev Intellectual School, and leading STEM and core chemistry delivery at Kingston University International Study Centre in the UK.

Karen Keenan has a first class degree in Biology from Royal Holloway, University of London, and a PGCE from Reading University. After three years of teaching, she became head of Biology in a UK school and later developed science teaching and learning at a number of international institutions. She is currently an examiner of Biology for the Edexcel exam board.

Alice Ward teaches Biology on the UPCSE. She has a degree in Biomedical Science from the University of Kent and began her career in education in learning support at a secondary school, helping students with special educational needs and providing one-to-one science tuition. She gained her PGCE from the UCL Institute of Education in 2020. Before joining UPCSE, she taught Biology in a UK secondary school and also taught Chemistry and Physics to GCSE level.

Dr Ramesh Satkurunath teaches Mathematics on the UPCSE and is Mathematics Coordinator on the UPC. He previously taught Mathematics on the UPCH. He studied Mathematics with the Philosophy of Mathematics at King’s College London, volunteered for Oxfam for a year before starting his PhD, completed a PhD in Homological Algebra at the University of Southampton, and then spent a year tutoring students before joining UCL.

Dr Chris Fenwick obtained a first degree in Mathematics and Computing, a Master’s degree in Numerical Analysis from Brunel University, a Master’s in Space Science from UCL, and a PhD in mathematics education from Brunel University. He has over 30 years’ experience supporting and delivering subjects relating to mathematics.

Rena Sherman has taught mathematics on both the UPCH and UPCSE since 2007. She majored in Mathematics at the University of Cape Town, taught in high schools, wrote for a distance education college, and taught mathematics at the University of the Witwatersrand for 10 years. She was also an election officer and peace monitor in South Africa’s first democratic elections.

Vincent Gimbert has a Master’s degree in Physics and Engineering from Grenoble INP and Imperial College London. He specialised in nano physics and climate physics research, later gained a Postgraduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education from UCL, and has taught mathematics and physics at secondary and undergraduate level. He joined the UPCSE team in 2010.

Dr Ioannis Koutsonas has a Bachelor's degree in Physics with Astrophysics from the University of Birmingham, a Master's in Quantum Fields and Fundamental Forces from Imperial College London, and a PhD completed in 2009. He carried out research in Nanotechnology and Micro-devices at Birmingham and has taught Physics and Engineering for over 10 years at the Universities of Birmingham and Queen Mary, as well as in several colleges. He has been a Lecturer in Physics on UPCSE since 2010.

Martin studied Philosophy and Politics at the Polytechnic of North London. After qualifying to teach English, he completed a Trinity Diploma in TESOL and later an MA in English Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics at King’s College London. He has over 20 years’ teaching experience in the UK and abroad, and has worked as a teacher, teacher trainer, language school manager and English for Speakers of Other Languages manager. Since 2006, he has coordinated UCL’s Academic English programmes.

James Ford has taught Academic English in UK higher education since 2009, after earlier experience in General English. He holds a BA in French and Drama from Goldsmiths, University of London, and an MA in Applied Linguistics and ELT with Distinction from King’s College London. He has worked on pre-sessional, in-sessional and foundation programmes across several Russell Group universities, and currently leads the Academic English and ARAM compulsory UPCH subjects.

Peter Colebrook has worked as a tutor on the UPC since 2008 and as senior tutor since 2014. He is responsible for UPC students’ health and welfare, is an official UCL Wellbeing Champion, and is a trained mental health first aider. Before joining CLIE, he taught English in Spain and Romania, and later on a university programme in Turkey. He has a Master’s degree in English Language Teaching and Teacher Development from Exeter University.

Julie Willis qualified to teach English to international students in 1992 and has since taught abroad, including in Japan, Finland and Kazakhstan. In 2001, she completed an MA in Applied Linguistics and English Language Teaching at King’s College London, graduating with distinctions overall and for her dissertation. She has extensive experience teaching academic English, holds a Higher Education Academy fellowship, and has trained teachers for University of Cambridge courses.

Mark Bailey joined CLIE in 2012 and has mainly taught Academic English on the UPC and pre-sessional courses. He began his teaching career while living in Japan for six years, teaching English at universities and businesses including Nintendo and Panasonic. He holds a Master’s degree from UCL, focuses on entrepreneurship, and has worked with UCL Innovation & Enterprise and Knowledge Lab. Before language education, he studied economics and worked in finance.

Jennie Verma qualified as an English language teacher in 2002 and then taught in Malaysia and Sri Lanka. After her degree in Social Anthropology, she completed a cross-discipline MA at SOAS, covering anthropology, linguistics and literature, and graduated with Distinction in 2012. She first came to UCL to study the Diploma in English Language Teaching for Adults, also with Distinction, and returned as an Academic English teacher at CLIE in 2008.

Angela Cooper graduated with an English/French Honours degree from the University of London, then completed a PGCE, the RSA Diploma in Teaching English, an MSc in Teaching English for Specific Purposes at Aston University, and a Doctorate of Education in TESOL at Exeter University. After working at universities in China and the Middle East, she joined CLIE in 2005 and has worked on pre- and in-sessional courses, postgraduate thesis writing and the UPC.

Nick Lamarti graduated from the University of Montpellier with a degree in Applied Modern Languages. He studied French, German and Spanish, worked across Europe and Africa, taught in private schools, and completed his teacher training at UCL in 2000. Since 2011, he has taught English as a foreign language and Academic English at CLIE. His interests include machine translation and intercultural studies, and he helps students develop the writing and speaking skills needed for their degrees.